Local History by Dede Terns-Thorpe - Hunters 200-Plus Years

Today’s story is aimed at the folks who haven’t had the privilege to hear of Hunter’s history. Here’s a quick little summary of the Town of Hunter’s 200 + years.

It wasn’t until the late 1700s that the first known people came to the mountaintop. History books share that even the early Indians thought the mountains haunted and only entered them for hunting.

The first known family in town was the Haines family, entering by way of Elka Park through Mink Hollow. (The area now called Elka Park was considered Tannersville until 1889 when the Elka Park cottagers formed. The cottagers knew that miles and time would be saved by making a road through the Mink Hollow Trail to Ulster County. The cottagers attempted this several times. The 1950s was the last attempt by Orville and Izzy Slutzky (at no charge to the town). A road halfway down was built when N.Y.S. shut the job down and declared it too narrow for safe travel.)

At first, the Town of Hunter was part of the Town of Windham. It wasn’t until 1813 that N.Y.S. divided Hunter into its own Township. (Hunter was originally called the Town of Greenland in 1813, but changed to Hunter in 1814). A board was appointed and progress soon began.

In 1817, Colonel Edwards arrived in Hunter Village to open a tannery in our Hemlock-filled forest. The tanneries brought numerous families to the area, many staying on after the tanneries ran out of Hemlocks, in the 1850s. Tanning ended, but brought the beginning of furniture factories, utilizing the wood products left by the tanners, rotting on forest floors.

Then came the railroads and the difficult job of clearing Route 214 through Lanesville, Edgewood, and Stony Clove. I credit Lanesville with being the true start of tourism on the Mountain Top.

The three big hotels in Haines Falls, the 1823 Catskill Mountain House attracted worldwide attention, the 1852 Laurel House built at the crest of the  Kaaterskill Falls, and Hotel Kaaterskill, built-in 1881-1882, was completed within a year and meant working throughout the cold, winter months. How were these buildings built with no electricity, no transportation, and no service of any kind?  (No laptops, cell phones, texting, and no training!)

Just after the railroads came in 1882, hotels and boarding houses popped up. Soon the private cottage parks opened: Onteora in 1887, Twilight in 1888, Santa Cruz in 1889 (?), Elka in 1889, and Sunset in roughly 1900.

The automobile, followed by prohibition, the Great Depression, and WW II took its toll.

Years ago people,( residents and visitors) could remain on the Mountain Top for all their basic needs. We even had a Red Cross Hospital in Tannersville.

The community only lacked year-round employment and that became the goal of Izzy and Orville Slutzky. Through many ups and downs, they finally opened Hunter Mt. Ski Bowl for the 1959-1960 season and accomplished winter employment.  

Being a board member of the T’ville Evergreen Cemetery has taught me that it's the people lying in our cemeteries that are to be applauded, and never forgotten. They are the ones responsible for most of what we have today. We only improve on what they gave us.

We’re a small town with a great school, multiple religious facilities, good roads, good drinking water, two theaters, two libraries, great restaurants, small groceries, good lakes, natural beauty, and so much more.

We’ll end by thanking our 50+ year-old Mt. Top Historical Society Board (thank you, Justine Legg Hommel). Justine, your volunteer board works hard to keep our rich history alive.  

Thank you for reading. Stay safe and be well.

Dede Terns-Thorpe/Town of Hunter Historian